Saturday, November 17, 2007

As we drive around Thailand we're struck by the number of traffic hazards we confront on the roads every minute of every day. They range from the downright scary to the surprisingly cute. But no matter how horrified we are when we suddenly come face to face with a herd of animals sauntering across the highway (ox in this case), or as we overtake a motorcycle carrying a family of six (a tiny child precariously perched up front, another small kid on behind soundly sleeping as he somehow clings on to his older sibling, the parents in between), we never seem to get as mad as we might at 'home', where road rage prevails. It's something about the exoticism of the hazards that amuses us more than alarms us. Our willingness to be surprised. Our openness to the unusual. But it's also because we're in a far more tolerant mood when we're travelling than we are on our tedious daily commutes to work where tempers can so easily flare. (Especially, for us, in the gridlock that is Dubai.) Don't you think? My husband, who is the driver in our partnership (I navigate) will probably disagree. But there have been so many traffic hazards to entertain us on the roads in Thailand that I thought I'd start this series.

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About Me

A perpetual globetrotter and travel writer who has experienced over 60 countries, authored 40+ guidebooks, and published 100s of articles for National Geographic Traveler, Wanderlust, Paperplane, Get Lost, Lifestyle+Travel, Voyageur, Hemispheres, The Independent, Lonely Planet, DK, Footprint, Rough Guides, Insight, Thomas Cook, AA Guides, Fodors, USA Today, and more. This blog is about the things that are cool (and not so cool) about travel, that inspire us to travel, and that are inspiring about the places we visit. It's a space for me to reflect upon my work as a travel writer, the travel media, travel publishing, and travel industry.